Hi, my name is Cora. I am a beginner designer and have a few patterns published at Cora Shaw on Ravelry (http://www.ravelry.com/designers/cora-shaw). I am married to a wonderful man. We are owned by 3 cats (Patches, Snowball & Pumpkin) as well as 3 dogs (Molly, Leo and Bear). I am dealing with End Stage Renal Failure and currently on dialysis.

Anything Knitted and Crocheted

Welcome to my blog. I hope to blog about my knitting and crocheting as well as everyday life. The patterns that I post are original and as such there is copyright on them. When they are based on another pattern there is a link to the pattern.

My husband and I adopted a beautiful dog named Leo. He is a dachshund and absolutely adorable!we adopted him on June 23, 2010 and he has become the love of our lives.

I love to share patterns that I find along the way or to talk about some of the neatest designers that are out there today, so I love to post links to the designs or the designers.

Remember their Names

By Mike Landry

A video still created by Janis Cole for "Remember Their Names."

A different medium perhaps, but for renowned Canadian documentary filmmaker Janis Cole art installation is now just another part of her ongoing practice. And so it is that her first solo exhibition draws upon the same themes that have made her a success over her 35-year career.

Remember Their Names features photographic, audio and video-based artifacts to document Canada’s largest serial killing and crime-scene investigation that ended in the conviction of Robert Pickton. Using missing persons’ posters, a broadcast interview and recorded 1-800 tipline calls, Cole aims to highlight the sixty-five women who disappeared from the streets of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside from 1978-2001.

“This isn’t just a piece of art that I’ll be unveiling,” says Cole. “It is the better part of the last two years and a large part of the last decade.”

Cole first became interested in the topic in the late 90s after reading a newspaper story about a number of missing drug-addicted prostitutes from Vancouver’s downtown east-side. There was no mention of a potential serial killer—something that struck Cole as odd.

“I looked at the pictures of about ten thumbnail faces starting at me and I thought something’s wrong with this story. It was like, ‘wake up! something’s happening to these women,’ and I’ve talked about this story ever since with people.”

She even went as far as buying the film rights to a book written by one missing woman’s sister. The film didn’t work out, but she never lost interest. When she entered the cross disciplinary MFA program at Ryerson University, she took the project with her to finish.

Dealing with the subject with installation proved more successful for Cole. It freed her from focusing on a single-channel linear outcome. The non-linear piece takes sections of the story and highlights them for closer study while still being very narrative.

“It’s been a difficult project to make, and a few of my student friends in the program have said to me a number of times, ‘I don’t know how you do this work.’ It is difficult work to do.”

Of course, Cole has a background addressing people in society’s margins. With documentaries like P4W Prison for Women and Hookers on Davie she’s addressed addiction, prostitution and prison.

“People on the margins are voiceless, nameless, faceless, and I feel if we are going to as a society embrace all members of society we have to meet all members of society. My film work has always been a challenge to break down stereotypes and introduce the voice of those on the margins.”

Cole credits her exhausting research for allowing her to deal with such difficult subjects. For Remember Their Names, she spent a number of weeks in the downtown Eastside meeting women who work there. She’s met with families and friends of missing women, and followed the story as the bits unraveled.

“With this topic I’m dealing with some of perhaps the most marginalized members of society that were dismissed in gravely erroneous way that allowed so many lives to vanish and so many it turned out to be murdered.”

Cole is happy with the finished project and is looking forward to working with installation again, but hasn’t said goodbye to filmmaking either. Art installation just provided Cole with the experiential and emotional force to tell these stories.

“People didn’t know how to digest the story. They knew the most sensational aspects of it, but they didn’t know the heart of it. They didn’t know the women. And I’ve spent my time getting into that aspect of the story. Not the headlines but the deeper considerations so that people can actually get something from the story, an experience, and I that’s what installation does so well.”

Remember Their Names will be on display from Sat July 4 - Sat August 8 at Trinity Square Video in Toronto.

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Stevie Cameron's Books on Robert "Willie" Pickton

The was her first book called the Pickton File. It was released June 3, 2007.
This is the newest book called "On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the Tragic Story of Vancouver's Missing Women". This books delves more into who Pickton was and how he came to be the monster that he is. Should be interesting....

Knitters Without Borders

Edmonton, Alberta Local Yarn Stores

The “Proselytize Knitting” Badge

The “Proselytize Knitting” Badge - A requirement for all Knitting Scouts, the recipient must do his or her bit to present knitting in a positive light, whilst at the same time avoiding all references to “hipness”, grandmothers, and yoga.

I’m always doing my part in this arena whether it’s spoken or written like in this blog. I teach at my local community league, which was a fluke. I am involved in the Alberta Avenue Initiative and was asked to teach both knitting and crochet. I start with dishcloths as it gives the basics.

The “MacGyver” Badge (Level One) - The recipient must demonstrate clever use of a non-knitting tool in a knitting-related scenario. For instance, recipient has used paper clips as stitch markers, or successfully whittled and then utilized bamboo skewers as dpns.

I’ve used all kinds of things as stitch markers when none were available, and have found clever ways of knitting cables without cable needles using skewers.

Knit a Condom Amulet Project

Early In 2005, the general public began to hear about the crisis in HIV among women over 50. Here I am in September 2007, more than two years later, wearing one of my provocative Condom Amulets, enjoying the 69th birthday party for my friend, Bethene (her blog). Perfect setting for my art-in-the-public-interest campaign for Safe Sex. Thirty-five women there--all over 50.

Free Pattern Sites-Knit

Island of Misfit Patterns

Bag-A-Holic Button

I have become a Bag-A-Holic. I can't seem to get enough of bags, whether felted, or not. I love to learn new techniques. At the bag-A-Holics yahoo group we get to learn amazing techniques while learning how to put together bags. Come join in the fun!!